


Seven Necesseties

by JeckParadox



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Child Death, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-01
Updated: 2017-03-12
Packaged: 2018-05-24 05:44:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6143377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JeckParadox/pseuds/JeckParadox
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>No human that fell down to the Underground was the same. Each was a child, each died. Each possessed Determination, but not in the same amounts.<br/>But they all had enough for them to have reached his throne room. </p><p>Asgore's duels with each of the human souls.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Patience

 

 

She had spent two years in the ruins with Toriel. The kind older woman took her in without a word of complaint. And whenever one of the small monsters within the ruins attacked her, all she had to do was wait for Toriel to come help her, or until the monsters tired themselves out. Toriel had made her a new bow when she lost the one she came down with, made her dresses, and fed her her favorite things. 

She enjoyed the lessons, and the books, and simply spending time by the magical fire with her adopted mother. 

But she knew she couldn't stay forever. During their daily talks after supper, or while they were working, she occasionally asked Toriel how leave the Ruins. And every time, she deflected the question. The girl never pushed it, but she never forgot, either. Over the course of weeks, and then months, it became "How do I leave the Ruins?" to "Could" to "If" to "when I leave the Ruins", so slowly that the girl was sure that Toriel didn't know when the change happened. 

One night, when the girl announced that she thought it was about time to leave, Toriel didn't rise to stop her. For months, the two had been talking in a tone that knew that the small girl would eventually leave. The girl loved Toriel, and did her best to let her adopted mother down softly. 

The two walked to the door to the rest of the Underground, Toriel showing it to her daughter for the first and last time. The girl had never gone down to the basement in all two years, trusting that Toriel would show her when the time came, and that trust paid off. 

She carried with her pie, and maps, and advice, and one of the two plastic knives she had on her when she first fell into the belly of Mount Ebott. On her head was a bright purple bow lovingly made for her by Toriel in preparation for the day.

She hugged Toriel at the gateway, and left on her own, beginning her long, slow, and above all safe trek back to humanity.

* * *

The reports had started coming in from Snowdin. A couple of teenagers playing in the woods found injured, near to the point of death. A few days later, a pile of dust was found of what the Royal Guard stationed there could only assume was one of their own members who had gone missing the night before. 

Slow and steady, more and more reports came in. Often the victims survived, their wounds only enough to prevent them from fighting, rather than killing them outright. But not always. The air in the Underground was full of dread and tension. The Human would seemingly appear and disappear like a ghost. Slowly, ever so slowly making her way through Snowdin and then Waterfall. In Hotland, the most elite of the Royal Guards increased security ten-fold. New Home was sealed off, the vents used for travel deactivated. 

The attacks stopped, and for more than two months the Underground was nervous and quiet. The monsters in Hotland, Waterfall and Snowdin were reserved and quiet, staying indoors as much as possible, wondering where the Human was.

After a third month of searching, the Royal Guard launched an assault on a hidden area in Hotland where the Human had been waiting out the guard's caution. 

The fight lasted hours, the Human was not trained in the magics of the soul, but they had their own abilities. The guards attacked, and each blow was unable to land, simply phasing through the Human's soul as long as she didn't move. When the guards who were fighting became tired, she shot forward with her plastic knife, the intent behind her attack penetrating their magic bodies with more damage than if the knife were made of steel. She left them exhausted and for the most part unharmed. Two the ten soldiers who surrounded her were close to becoming dust, but she had given them the mercy she could. 

But she could no longer hide. The Royal Guards, cautious, almost as cautious as her, shepherded the human through roped-off streets, closer and closer to the castle. All the way to the throne room, where, even more patient than her, sat King Asgore, reading the reports.

* * *

 

"...Hello." He said. "...You've been down here a long time."

"Yes." She said simply. "I have."

He sighed. She was a tiny girl. A bright purple bow sat on her head, appearing almost as cat-ears. She held a pink, plastic knife behind her back. The way she held it didn't feel suspicious or malicious. She just held it behind her, out of the way, until she needed it. "I'm sorry about this." Asgore said, tossing his cape behind him, out of the way, and drawing up his great trident. 

"I just want to go home." The girl said. "Just let me pass through."

"I'm sorry." And the battle began. Great waves of fire magic flew from his open palms, encircling her in waves. She simply waited patiently. Letting the magic flow through her harmlessly. Humans weren't made of magic, and the only thing able to be affected by magic was their souls. But souls had their own defense mechanisms against magic. When monsters fought each other, they almost never got seriously injured because of those defenses. 

Hearing the reports of the various surviving victims, the Royal Guard had proven that the Human girl's soul could not be harmed while it was holding still. The girl disappeared in the face of threats, and moved towards her goal very slowly. Her soul reflected that.

The girl's soul held  still as ice, and the flames passed through as if it wasn't there. Between blasts she inched forward, Asgore attacking her with flames the moment he sensed movement, but never being able to catch her off-guard, never able to land a hit on the girl while she was moving. After a half hour, the girl saw Asgore beginning to tire out. She drew her knife and struck forward decisively. The plastic blade bounced harmlessly off his armor, and out of her hand. But from the strike a wave of primitive magic, purely emotional power, but strengthened by the unfair energies all humans possessed, stabbed through him. 

But it wasn't nearly enough to bring him down. Her eyes widened as his health seemed to merely go down by a splinter, a blow that brought every previous foe to their knees, or unconscious, or sometimes, to the girl's horror, to death, merely making him wince. 

She rushed to grab the plastic blade, the catalyst of her ability to somehow hurt monsters, but Asgore was just as fast. He swung his trident through the air, catching her on the end of it. She was flung away from her weapon, and landed on the marble floor. Cursing himself as he did it, but not allowing himself to hesitate and let the fight continue, he drove the trident down through her body. He sighed as the girl seemed to freeze in place, the magic-formed spikes of his weapon passing through her harmlessly. 

He stood above her, and waited.

He sat down, and waited.

He felt horrible, watching her. She, in fear or in determination or stubbornness or shock remained in the prone position she had fallen into when he first struck her with his trident. 

But he wouldn't give up.

The twilight colors from the barrier shifted oh-so-slowly to match the sky outside the mountain. Asgore spent a great deal of his time in the presence of the barrier for the sake of that little amount of natural sunlight he could feed his garden. 

The girl was a child, after all.

 

The darkness of natural night fell upon them, and Asgore closed his eyes, setting down his Trident within reach, but not in his hands. He let his cape fall over him, hiding his armor behind a wall of comforting, familiar purple cloth. 

Her eyes began to flutter. 

She stopped herself from yawning. 

She repeated to herself, like a mantra, silently, that Asgore was a threat. That his trident was still within reach. That her knife was still beyond hers. She couldn't go to sleep. She couldn't go to sleep. She couldn't go to sleep.

But Asgore was big, and warm, and fluffy. He was just like Toriel, who had protected and watched over her for two years. She remembered more of Toriel than of her actual parents. She trusted Toriel. She had fallen asleep in Toriel's presence more times than she could count, napping all over their home in the Ruins. 

She couldn't go to sleep.

She went to sleep, comforted by the last blurry-eyed sight of the big, horned, purple-and-white form she had learned to instinctively trust. 

Her chest began to rise and fall with her breaths, and she rolled over, her body getting into a more comfortable position.

Tears ran down Asgore's face as the circles of magical flame closed in on her soul. The girl didn't wake up.

"I'm sorry." He said to the glowing cyan heart that floated before him. The Royal Scientist came in, followed by the Royal Guard, and medical monsters, healing his wound. 

The Royal Scientist, giddy with glee, trapped the soul within a specially-built container. 

Where it waited.

* * *

 ** _"Ball" is "Small". You waited, still, for this opportunity... then dethroned "Ball" with a sharp attack_**.

 


	2. Bravery

"You think I'm staying here?" He said, stubbornly shifting back and forth. Toriel mirrored his movements, blocking his way to the door. 

"Please, my child. It's not safe." She said, pleadingly. "Out there the world is dangerous for you. He will... Asgore will..."

"I don't care!" The boy said proudly, he took a step back and punched the air a few times. Just ten minutes ago he had shown the same moves to that dummy! Talking was a waste of time. "If this 'Asgore' guy messes with me, he'll get a taste of my one-two-"

"No, my child." She said sharply. "Please... already he has claimed the life of one of my children. A girl, who just like you fell into the Ruins. He has killed her, and taken her soul-"

"And I need to save her!"

"No!" Toriel said, feeling a little guilty at the look of hope and adventure broke when she shouted. "No, she cannot be saved. He _killed_ her."

"Then she needs to be avenged!"

"You're just a child!" She said, "Please, stay. It's safe here. There's toys, and books, and puzzles. And me. I promise, my child-"

He held up a finger, and shook his head. "Lady, as nice as it was of you to heal me after that hard fall and for bringing me right to your house but... We've known each other maybe fifteen minutes! I'm not your child, and I'm not staying here. I need to go back to the surface! My real family is up there, having a picnic! And I need to get back to them!"

She looked into his eyes, biting her lip and glancing behind her. "I can't let you go." She said. "I will not have yet another of my children march off to their death."

"I'm not your child!" He cried, swinging his fist. Toriel buckled under the force of the blow, flung into the door she was protecting, dazed. "Wha-" the boy blinked, and then gulped nervously. "Goat lady?" He asked hesitantly, staring at her. Tears began to well up in his eyes as he got closer, helping her sit up. "Are you alright? I'm- I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I just..." he looked down at his fists, encased in toy boxing gloves. He didn't hit her that hard! He play-fought with his dad and mom all the time, and they just shrugged it off harmlessly. He was a little boy, with pillows tied around his hands. He couldn't hurt her! "Are you okay?" He asked again, more nervous. 

She groaned a little, her eyes blinking awake. As soon as she was fully conscious, her face changed to an expression of hurt, shock, and betrayal. "You-" she began.

"I'm sorry!" He said, tears beginning to run down his face, "I didn't mean to- I didn't think I hit you hard!"

Her expression softened, and with a pained sound she got to her feet. "It's alright my chi-... Human child." The boy looked impossibly relieved. "You just need to be careful. Monsters like me... our bodies are different from humans. We're made of magic." She began. "But that means that emotions are very powerful. If you strike a monster with a weapon, even if it's a simple toy, the blow will be felt by your intent. You... wanted to hurt me, and so you did. Humans are dangerous to monsters, just the same as monsters are dangerous to humans."

"I... I didn't know!"

"Then I have a lot to teach you, child." She said kindly. Taking his hand she began to lead them back up the tunnel to her home, when he pulled loose.

"I'm... I'm very sorry for hitting you, Goat Lady!"

"My name is Toriel, child. And it is quite alright, you didn't know it would hurt me so badly."

"I'm very sorry for hitting you Toriel!"

"It's alright child. I forgive you. Now, come. Let's have something to eat-"

"But I need to go back. To my family."

She gave him a hard look. "Please child-"

"I'm... I'm strong!" He declared. "I can fight Asgore!"

"No, you can't!"

"I'm sorry!" Turning and running, he charged for the exit. 

Reaching out with her fire magic, she created a wall of flames around the door. "I will not have another child run to their death!" She shouted. And then, panicked, she shouted "Stop! Don't touch the flame-"

He charged through it, screwing his eyes shut as he did so, but the fire passed through him harmlessly. Without looking back, he flung himself through the doorway and through the darker room, coming out in a snowy white forest.

Charging ever forward, he made his way through the snowy landscape. Leaping over puzzles, tackling sentries, careful not to hit them too hard, and pushing through.

With every magical ax, blade, and blast that passed through him in his rush forward, the greater his confidence that he was invincible grew. 

Sighting a town in the distance, he found himself stopped by a large bear-like creature. Thinking it was another Royal Guard, he swung his fist into its belly, knocking it over. He jumped to the side, intending to run past him before he got back up, when he realized that the bear was dissolving. White dust like ash crumbled as the light of life disappeared from the creature.

He stood there, frozen in place, staring at the pile of ash. There was no armor, no weapon. But... it was a big monster. Who had turned toward him and... He looked at the snowman, the last creation of the monster he had killed, and began to cry. 

Walking away from the scene, no longer running, almost dragging his heels, he saw a box sitting in the snow. Toriel had said, that even if it was only a toy... if the monster wasn't willing to fight, and if he _wanted_ to hurt them-

Still crying, he yanked off the glove he had punched with. Throwing it into the box, as if it was the murderer and not him, he slammed it shut and walked to the town. 

* * *

 

He traded his bandanna and remaining glove to an elderly rabbit-like monster, in exchange for getting to stay at her inn for as long as he stayed in Snowdin.

Walking through the town, he halted in his tracks when he saw a group of armored dog monsters approaching him. Their faces were grim as they leveled spears and readied spells. "You're coming with us." The leader of the bunch said. "Human."

He considered flailing, knowing that a single punch would be able to destroy the dog, armor and all. That if he kept moving, they wouldn't be able to touch him. That he had nothing to be afraid of, because in this world, he was strong. He was invincible. He pulled back his arm, and in response the dog stabbed him with a magic sword, summoned from thin air and blasted through him. 

The pain was sharp and sudden. The sword magic passed through flesh harmlessly, but met, and burned something deep inside his chest. "Do not resist, Human!" 

His confidence shattered, unable to run, unwilling to kill, he merely nodded. The Royal Guard nodded to one of his companions, and a cinnamon roll was brought forward. "Eat, Human!"

Deciding to humor him, the sad little boy took a bite, and realized that the wound in his soul healed, the food in his mouth crumbled to a thin vaguely cinnamon-tasting dust when he finished chewing, but the substance, the essence, of the pastry seemed to reach into the life in his chest and repair it. Tears began to roll down his face again.

"Good boy!" The dog said. "Now come, Human!"

* * *

"Oh." The Royal Guards stepped away, leaving the child to stand on his own. Asgore looked to side, distressed. "How long have you been down here?"

"Only two hours, maybe."

Asgore nodded, "Is... there anything you would like? To eat, or drink?"  The boy shook his head no, unwilling to raise his eyes from the floor. He looked to the guards. "Leave us for now... I will do what needs to be done."

The soldiers trooped away, and Asgore turned towards the doorway that leads to the barrier. "Then... follow me."

The two walked through the halls in an uneasy silence. 

"Are you taking me to Asgore?" The boy asked, finally.

"I... I am Asgore." The king said, looking down at the child.

"You killed a little girl." The boy said, getting angry.

The king nodded sadly. 

"Are you going to kill me too?"

"I... really am sorry about this." The king said. The two entered the barrier room, and were awash with twilight. "But this is something that must be done. For the sake of monster kind."

"I..." the boy looked down at his hands, feeling small without his gloves or his bandanna. "I killed someone. I'm sorry. But I threw away my gloves! I won't do it ever again!"

"..."  Asgore looked at him in surprise. "You don't have a weapon then?"

"No."

"...The little girl who came before you killed... many monsters. Some by accident, some intentionally." He sighed. "But she was still a child. It wasn't my place to cast judgement on her. If I wanted to punish her, we should have put her in the dungeon. As you would be." He swept back his cape, bringing out his trident, starting the battle. He stabbed forward, piercing the boy who had been caught off guard. "The reason I killed her... was to get her soul. To break the barrier that holds all of monsterkind trapped inside this mountain."

"You're... trapped?" The boy asked, stumbling back, wishing desperately for a cinnamon roll. 

"Yes. But eventually, if enough humans fall... We will be free."

He stabbed forward once more, but the boy jumped forward, letting the blade pass through him without damage. Asgore closed his eyes, sending out spiralling waves of fire,  but the boy passed through each one without taking damage. Biting his lip, the boy jumped forward and punched Asgore in the chest. The king winced from the blow, but didn't fall back. It didn't bite very hard, only taking a few measly points of HP.

In response, he sent forward dozens of streams of flames, catching the boy off-guard. He was brought down to 1 HP, and quickly began shuffling in place, mimicking the boxers he idolized. He just had to keep moving forward. He punched Asgore again, taking care to dodge away as soon as he did so, to never allow Asgore a moment to hit him. The child breathed hard, but refused to back down. 

Asgore rose his trident, and taking a breath, channeled magic through it. It glowed a deep blue. A two-sided magic he had learned in the time since, in case another Human with the power of the little girl came. The spell had two forms: One would only damage if you were moving, the other if you were not. The cyan spikes of the trident came down on the boy, who instinctively ran forward.

The blade passed through his soul, and with a grunt, he stopped and fell. 

A glowing orange heart rose from his body, radiating warm light. 

Asgore sighed.

* * *

 

_**You are the kind of person who rushes fists-first through all obstacles.** _

 


	3. Integrity

Toriel wasn't really sure how to feel. More than a decade had passed since the brave boy had left, and a few months even longer than that since she had lost the girl before him. Her first two children had died two decades before that.

"Thank you." The girl said, nervous at the sight of a gigantic monster guiding a warm glowing light that wasn't _quite_ fire over her legs. "For... healing me."

"I do not mind at all, my child." She said simply. The creature picked her up gently and began to walk through the ruins. 

"Where am I?" She asked, looking around. "My leg feels better now, you can let me walk."

"Nonsense, child." The goat monster said quietly. "Please, just... just rest for now. You've been through a scary experience."

"No. I can walk." She said, and without another word she wriggled out of Toriel's hands and onto the stone floor. Toriel moved in to catch her a second too late, but the girl wouldn't have any of it, jumping away backwards. 

"Are you sure, child?"

"I'm sure. Lead the way, Miss."

Toriel and the girl lived together for about two weeks in the ruins, Toriel was careful to not mention the rest of the Underground, but the girl had seen the ruins of Old Home and was beginning to understand that Toriel was keeping her locked away. "Who lived in all of these buildings?"

"...Monsters, like me." She answered. "A long time ago."

"Miss Toriel, where did they go?"

Toriel sighed, leaning back into her chair and looking into the fireplace. "It was a long time ago, my child." She smiled sadly at the little human, dressed in a deep blue tutu and ballerina outfit she refused to take off in all her time in the Ruins. "As you can tell, I am very old. I'm a special kind of monster, a Boss Monster. We only age when our children do... and I have no child. No biological one! I mean. Don't you fret dear." She stared into the flames. "All the monsters who lived in those buildings have long-since died of old age."

"What about the little monsters, who live in the Ruins? The frogs and Loox and vegetoids? Why are they still here?"

"...Aren't you a curious little one."

"Miss Toriel." The girl got up from her chair and stomped down with both feet. "You are lying to me!"

"No, dear, I wouldn't-"

"Where are the other monsters?" She asked again, narrowing her eyes. This girl was a child, young, immature, and naive. But she was older than the two who had come before her. She had begun to become suspicious of the world around her. As soon as she told her first fib, she came to a realization that takes most other people a lifetime to understand: that others can lie too. And probably do.

"My child-"

Toriel's eyes shifted slightly to the side, preparing a lie, and the girl felt herself filled with rage. "Liar!" The girl shouted, stomping her feet once more. "Is the way out in the basement?"

"I can't just let you-" but the older woman's expression had been enough to confirm it for her. The girl turned around and ran out of the living room. Toriel was after her like a shot, moving faster than seemed possible for the massive goat creature. The child jumped off the railing, bypassing the stairs entirely in her mad rush. "Human! Human stop! He'll kill you! Asgore will kill you!"

She didn't stop running, but Toriel was simply faster. The monster dipped down, trying to grab her, so the girl jumped, extending her legs and gracefully dodging the swipe. Toriel was transfixed by the sudden dance move for a moment, which the child took advantage of to keep running. 

Soon, the door was in front of them. Toriel, having enough, raised her arms and summoned a great mass of fire, separating the girl from the doorway. "Child. Everything I am doing, everything I told you, was to protect you!"

"Let me go, Miss Toriel." The girl said, her voice wavering.

"Please, just... come inside. Live with me. It hasn't been too bad, has it?"

The girl looked at Toriel's face. "Is it possible for me to go home? Back to the human world?"

"..."

"It is. Isn't it?"

"No. It's impossible."

"You... you're..." she stared at Toriel's face. "Are you... no, you're not... but could you..." She couldn't tell whether Toriel had been honest in saying that. "Were you lying, just now?"

"..."

"Please!" 

"..."

"I just want to go home!"

"..." Toriel looked into the girl's eyes this time herself. "And you can never find the ruins to be home?"

"No." The girl's eyes held a furious glint. 

The fires damped down to nothing, and Toriel pushed the door open. "If you must go... do not come back, alright?" She said quietly. "I hope you understand."

"I don't." The girl said, still angry. She turned her back on Toriel, angry that she had been holding her back, that she had been trying to keep a whole wide wintery world to herself.

She didn't turn back to look as the door slammed shut behind her.

* * *

 

The sentries were after her, and the girl was delighted as she began the first act of the greatest ballet of her life. Leaping, twirling, and dodging the armored warriors, she pushed through the snowy lands bit by bit. 

However, her mad dash forward stopped when she came to Waterfall. Crystals dotted the ceiling like stars, the water glowed with a blue shine that was both comforting and eerie. Occasionally music would reverberate through the halls. The tiny plucking sound of a music box carried from Echo Flower to Echo Flower. Combined with the whispered wishes of monsters and the constant background rumble of the area's namesake, it was a symphony unlike what she had ever heard before. As it carried by, the monsters in the area would stop what they were doing to listen. She supposed it must have been like a rainbow, to them. 

She had lost the Royal Guards in Snowden, and was taking some time to relax. 

She peaked into a cave, and found a turtle-like monster sitting under the light of his lamp. He looked up, and his face twisted into a surprised smile. "Whoah there! I've got some neat junk for sale."

"Do you have any food?"

"Sure, kid." He reached into his bag, pulling out some apples. "...So, it's been quite a few years since a human came into my shop."

"Oh?" She edged a little closer to the door, suddenly wary of him. Some monsters recognized her as being human right off the bat, either treating her as if they were meeting a celebrity, or ran in fear to call Royal Guards. Other monsters showed no sudden recognition, and simply assumed her one of them. But never before had she been recognized and then regarded cooly like this. "How long?"

"Hmmm... thirty years ago."

"What were they like?"

"They were... a real creep!" He said, smiling wide. 

She was surprised at his sudden change in demeanor, so she decided to stay where she was and listen to the turtle. 

"Honestly," the turtle continued, "you had never seen a more eerie child. But the king and queen love them to bits, so I really can't say anything worse about them, can I? Not when they died trying to save us all."

"They... died?"

"Every human that falls into the Underground dies down here too." the turtle said, in the same slightly cheerful tone.

"I think... I should leave."

"Hey kid, word of advice?"

She stopped, looking over to him. "Yes?"

"If you want to blend in, wear a striped shirt. A tutu is all fine and dandy, but the Royal Guards tend to use clothing as a way to note someone. Plenty of monsters look the same, so when describing a criminal, we always would tell each other 'they're in a red hat!' Or 'They've got white shoes' or something like that. Ditch the outfit, ditch the guards."

"But..." the girl looked down at her tutu. "But this is _my_ tutu! It tells everyone that I'm _me_!"

"Kid, 'me'is on the run from the Royal Guards. I think that you might want to be someone else, if just until you get out."

Pouting, she turned to leave. "Why are you even trying to help me, anyway?"

"Cause' you're not a bad kid."

She left the little cave and walked back to the entrance area. She walked over to the wooden bridge, and stuck her hand into the large waterfall. Watching her reflection get split down the middle, she sighed. The turtle was right. It pained her to do it, but if it would help get the Royal Guard off her back, it would be something she had to do. 

Closing her eyes, she pulled off the frilly part of the tutu, and threw it into the waterfall. 

Remembering his comment about 'shoes' she left her slippers behind in some tall grass. 

* * *

 

The reports had all said the same thing: no deaths, not even injuries. The new Human would simply leap over and under and around every attack. When a magic attack was made against her, she simply danced away. 

He was glad that this human was passive. He really was, even if it made his job harder. The dozens of deaths incurred by the cyan soul, and the single victim of the orange, weighed heavily on Asgore. But it also made him feel just a bit more justified. The humans were dangerous. Not like sweet Chara, who had given up their life to try and free them all, who had sided with monsters over humanity. No. The fallen humans, even if they were children, had been murderers. Monster-killers.

This one wasn't. 

Eventually, the girl was captured while putting on an elaborate performance. She had blended in to the populace of Waterfall for almost an entire week, wearing fake horns so that even the few who had seen a human before wouldn't recognize her. But when the sound of the music box wafted through Waterfall, she got up and danced. Mid-performance, in a fit of emotion, she pulled her horns free. A monster recognized her and rushed off to call the Royal Guard. 

They arrived, cornered her, and led her to New Home, and from there to the throne room. 

"Hello."

"You look like Toriel." He winced.

"I... I what?"

"What's your name?"

"I am... I am King Asgore. How did you know that name?"

"She took care of me in the Ruins."

"She... she did that, for you?"

"...Are you going to kill me?"

He looked to the side, "..."

"I see."

"How long have you been here in the Underground?"

"About half a year." She answered, tensing slightly. 

"Well... we might as well get on with this." Asgore said, after a moment's awkward silence. "Don't be scared." He said, as he held out his hand for her to take. 

"I'm going to die, not take a visit to the dentist!" She protested. She paced in place, arms crossed. Asgore waited patiently, hand held out for her. 

After a few minutes, she took it. He led her to the barrier, and she looked out into the twilight field of magic. 

"...Is there anything left for you to do?" He asked after a time. "Would you like to go take care of some unfinished business, and return? Perhaps have a bite to eat?" She hadn't hurt a single soul, in all her time down in the Underground, as far as he knew. He owed her this much.

"One thing." She admitted. "Maybe three."

He nodded. "You can go, I will wait here for you."

"No. I'm done with this." She said sadly. "I already promised not to do those things. And I don't break my promises. But... is this the only way out to the Surface?"

"Yes."

She sighed sadly. "I really wish you were lying."

"By doing so... you'll help save monsterkind. With the power of seven human souls, I can break this barrier, and let all of us go free." He put a hand on her shoulder. "You'll be remembered. You'll help save us all."

"...I really _really_ wish you were lying." She whispered. 

"Human. I'm sorry, goodbye." He drew his trident, and stabbed forward. Reacting on instinct, she leaped over the arc of the swing, landing back on her feet perfectly poised. 

Surprised, Asgore doubled down on his attacks, sending waves of fire in her direction. Upon coming close, she would jump forwards into it, expertly clearing the gap where one flame wall connected to another, leaping over dips, jumping through holes, and twisting out of the way of encroaching chains. She would dash through his Trident, or let it pass through her harmlessly, having dealt with blue and orange attacks from her duels with the Royal Guards. 

She performed the greatest ballet of her life, but it wasn't perfect. He whittled down her HP, until it was a mere sliver. Surrounded by flame, she stopped using MERCY then. Refusing to continue attempting ineffectually to flee, she instead chose a simple ACT. She gave a curtsy.

"The name of that ballet was 'King under the mountain'." She said, collapsing from exhaustion, lying on the ground. "Or Bergentrükung."

The flame washed over her body harmlessly, but it stopped breathing. Asgore watched sadly as a deep blue heart rose from her chest.

* * *

_**Hopping and twirling, your original style pulled you through.** _

 


	4. Perseverence

Five short years after the child in a tutu had left, another human fell down. 

"Are you alright, my child?" she asked, standing over the small human as they laid on their back in the field of flowers. 

"Huh." they said, looking up at Toriel, the too-large cloudy glasses over their eyes concealed their emotions, "Monster do exist."

"Yes, though hopefully you will not have to deal with too many." she said, offering her hand, "I will heal you, my child. Please, don't be afraid."

"I'm not." they said, honestly, "Just surprised, mostly. And in a bit of pain. That drop was longer than I expected." Toriel smiled gently, and healing magic washed over the small human, restoring their HP. 

The human's eyebrows shot up above their glasses as they felt the magic touch their soul, "Wow." they said, before reaching into their backpack and pulling free a large notebook. They flipped to the nearest open page, and Toriel watched with some confusion, the child's handwriting was utterly atrocious, she couldn't read a thing, but the child seemed satisfied with what they were writing, "Was that magic?"

"Yes, my child. Are you feeling alright now?"

"I'm feeling good." they said, and under the big glasses their face broke into a smile, "Are there other ways to heal like that?"

* * *

 

The child asked questions constantly, and Toriel was absolutely enraptured. 

She had long wanted to be a teacher in a school, but her role as a Boss Monster kept her busy for most of her life, and now... well, the few monsters who called the Ruins home didn't exactly feel she was approachable, and none had children in need of education either way.

They were interested in everything about the Ruins;

"Where does the light come from?" 

"What type of vine is that?"

"Who built these puzzles?"

"How old are these buildings?"

"How many monsters lived down here?"

"Where do they live now?"

"Why are the Froggits scared of you?"

"How do trees grow underground?"

"How do you do magic?"

"Who chose the colors, because they had good taste!"

The child took in information like a sponge, dutifully writing in their notebook in their indecipherable chicken-scratch. 

As she led them by the hand through the Ruins' puzzles and traps, she eventually came to her house, leading the child inside and taking them to the room where a bed was waiting for them.

"Toriel?"

"Yes, my child?"

"Whose bed is this?"

"Yours, my child."

"...Whose bed was this, then?"

Toriel sighed, "I'll... fix dinner for the two of us, and then I shall tell you."

"That's fine." the child said, walking into the room, and looking at the different pairs of shoes, the toys, and then stopped looking at anything else upon sighting the books. The child rushed to the case, pulling down one book after another, piling them around themself. 

Toriel smiled at the display, before going off to fix the food. When she felt the pie was done, she took a slice on a plate, and walked back to the child's room, smiling at seeing them asleep, surrounded by open books. Setting the plate on the floor, she lifted the child into the bed and pulled the blanket over them.

* * *

 

The child had forgotten their questions about the previous owner of the bed, instead pelting her with questions about the contents of the books. It was good fun, for about a week, when she was slowly running out of knowledge for the child. They began to get restless, venturing back into the ruins, exploring every nook and cranny. 

One evening, she arrived back at home to find that her child had barely a sliver of HP left, sitting in the kitchen waiting for a cup of spider cider to warm up in a microwave. "My child!" she shouted, rushing over and splashing them with healing magic, "What happened?!"

"It's fine, the cider would have healed me." they said, "But thank you anyway."

"Child, how did you get so injured?"

"It's fine. It's not like I died."

"Tell me how you got hurt." Toriel ordered, using her sternest voice, and the child gulped. 

"I... I was fighting the monsters in the ruins."

Toriel looked surprised, "You... did you... make any fall down?" she asked, scared of the answer. Even accidently, humans were simply so much more powerful. But with a brief challenge to her child, she saw with relief that their LV remained one. 

"No, of course not Toriel." the child said, insulted, "I was just learning how to make them spare me." 

"Child, I thought I said that if a monster attacked, you should wait for me to come and resolve things! I told you that on the first day. I didn't know you were getting attacked every time you went out!"

"It's fine." they said, waving off Toriel's concern. "I know how to pacify every monster in the ruins, now. I only ever take one or two hits anyway. And as long as I don't die immediately, I always have food to heal me." they said, gesturing at the spider cider, "Though I forgot to pack extra food today, and a Loox got me down to only a few HP."

"Please, don't be so reckless child."

"It's not reckless, it's learning!" they said, showing the notebook. "See! It's all here, and the next time I meet a Loox, I can just say-" they looked down into the book, flipping a page, and reading what was written, apparently. "-'I won't pick on you, Loox', and then he'll leave me alone. And I found out the spiders are actually really friendly! They gave me some cider to heal me up when I asked, but... well, it's less gross when it's warm, rather than cold, and I'll just leave it at that." 

Toriel sighed, "Even so, child, I'd prefer if you avoided any more fights."

"Well, it's not like I can always avoid them, right? So it's best to be prepared!"

"I... I suppose so. But please be careful. Tell me when you are going out, and I can go with you! Or at least make more healing items for you."

"But if I'm with you, then they act differently."

She looked at them, sighing, "Please, child? After all, wouldn't it be better if you never got into a fight on your own? I'll always only be a short distance away, child."

They nodded, but looked unsatisfied, "I'm going to my room." they announced, "I need to write something down."

"Very well, Child."

* * *

 

"Child?" she called, looking around the Ruins, "Child!?" she was beginning to get worried. When she had awoken that morning, her child's bed was made, the toys were clean, and the all the bookshelves had been arranged alphabetically, and every missing book was put back in its proper place. The house's bookshelves hadn't been full like this since her child first fell to the Ruins. 

The kitchen had been picked clean, every bit of food was gone. 

And most distressingly, there was a page, ripped from the notebook that the child held so precious, held to the fridge with a magnet. She still hadn't managed to make out her child's terrible handwriting, no matter how much she tried to improve it, but she could tell with this note, that they had put in a serious effort into allowing her to read it;

_Going out. Thank you for the books, Toriel. And everything else. I'll be fine, so don't worry. I'll be sure to share everything I learned. I'm sure we'll be able to free the monsters from the other side. I can help you break the Barrier, I'll find the spiders a warmer place to stay, I'll save you all!_

She had immediately rushed out of the house, looking for them. She didn't think until hours later to check the basement, and the door out of the ruins. She had deflected all the questions about the basement, during her entire time with the child. She had even hid the entrance, piling snail cages and containers of food in front of it, so that whenever she went out into the rest of the Underground for groceries, even if her child followed her, they would simply think she had gone looking deep among the supplies, rather than going somewhere else.

But as she went down the stairs, and down the tunnels, and came to the wall of containers, she was horrified to see a path small enough for a single child opened through the clutter. 

* * *

 

"Should have brought a jacket." they mumbled to themselves as they walked through the snow. Taking the notebook from their pack, they scribbled a small note to themself, to be sure to bring winter wear when they came back from the surface with other humans. 

"Arf! Who goes there!" a sudden voice shouted through the snowy forest. The child froze in place, taking in the sight of a dog's head rising from the snow, a great suit of armor following it up. 

"Uh, me."

"Are you a human?!" the dog bent down and began to sniff. "You don't smell like a human!"

The child smiled a little, time to experiment, they supposed. "I'm a human!"

"Grrr! I'll catch you!" the dog shouted, and a magical dog construct appeared, diving for them. The human braced themself, and felt the familiar form of their soul going to battle. They could almost see it, inside themself, three spider threads of purple light, with their soul bounding up and down across them. 

The magic passed underneath their soul, which was sitting on the highest thread. 

"That didn't work." They mumbled to themself, taking the notebook and writing the new information down. _Lie to guard dogs._

They spent the next few turns trying to see what worked, before deciding to flee. They got away from the guard dog, and sprinted off into the snow, heading for the lights in the distance. 

* * *

 

"Woof!" the enemy cried, and for once, they had no way to get around it. The magic blast was taller than even their highest bracket. The blast hit them, and as the dog pressed its advantage, the child let out a breath of relief. Whenever their soul was stuck, it shivered for a few seconds, invincible to any other attacks the monster might throw at them on their turn. 

The child hadn't tried every act they could think of yet, but the attacks were scary. Bouncing their soul on the web of purple light did nothing to avoid them, and they didn't want the Guard to whittle them down. They had already failed to flee twice, and decided that it was time to finish this. They pulled out their notebook, and opened the page to a list of all their worst words. There were swear words of course, but that wasn't what made the words "bad".

TERROR, SLAUGHTER, HATRED, HORROR, RUIN, CRUELTY, TRAPPED, CORRUPT, DOOM, SADNESS, NIGHTMARE, MURDERER. 

They had learned from Toriel that monsters were weak to intention. That even if you didn't hit them, if you *meant* to hurt them, you would. The child had spent a day in the ruins, when they were particularly sad- one of the spiders had fallen down that day, and the bake sale web the child had come to rely on was shut down in honor of the spider's death, and they just needed to get every sad word that was inside them out of them and onto the page. 

Ever since, this page was dangerous. 

They opened the notebook, and then turned the page the monster's way, clapping the book shut and forcing just a little of the malice written down at the creature. The dog winced, and its HP fell by quite a bit. 

No good, the dog guard was still unwilling to spare them. 

One more opening of the page, and then another. The dog looked tired now, panting and worried, and the child spared it once again. The dog, finally, turned tail and ran. 

With a sigh of relief, the child fled as well, running down the halls of Waterfall, back to their stronghold. 

"Hey Gerson!"

"Hi there kid." Gerson greeted, patting the ground next to him as he sat in his cave, "You look a little banged up. Want a Crab Apple?"

"Sure." the turtle tossed it over to them, and the child caught it easily, eating it and feeling wonderful as their HP returned. They sat down next to Gerson and began to take up yet another notebook from Gerson's pile, filling in the new observations they had made. Dozens of copies of their notebook laid around the tunnel, all of them identical.

"Why you got so many of those, kid?" Gerson asked. "All of them just have the same writing in em'." 

"In case I ever lose one." The child replied. "I can't let something like losing all my work stop me, after all. I met a new Guard today, and I need to make sure that I keep track of how to beat her!"

"Fine, fine." The turtle said, "Hmph. Do you mind if I sell these? They're taking up my inventory."

"Once I leave for the surface, you're welcome to sell them all you want." the child said, "But until then, I need them. And you said I could stay here when I needed to be safe."

"Of course kid, of course." The turtle smiled, "Nobody can hurt you inside a shop, that's jus' logic... but are you planning on heading out soon?"

"I need time to prepare." The child said. "I can't defeat Asgore without preparing first!"

"Well, I'm not going to tell you to give up on your hopes and dreams, kid." the turtle ruffled the child's hair. "But don't go biting off something you can't chew. It's not too bad being trapped with the rest of us, is it?"

"I just need to figure it out. You'll see. There's a way to get everyone out of here, I just need to find it."

* * *

 "Hm?" Asgore looked up from watering the flowers, "Is there someone there- oh."

"Hello." 

"Howdy, human." Asgore greeted sadly, "I take it you are here to cross the barrier?"

"Yes. Though if we're being honest, it won't happen today."

"No, it likely won't."

"Well, I think we should begin."

"So soon?" Asgore asked, "If you have any regrets, anything you still wish to do... you are free to go."

The child shook their head, "Don't worry about that, King Asgore. Come on, let's fight."

Asgore relented, leading the child to the Barrier and making the other souls rise into position. Cyan, Orange, and Blue.

"Human... it was nice to meet you. Goodbye." Asgore drew his trident, and initiated the battle, he unleashed a wave of fire, and the human's soul bounded up and down, avoiding fire blasts. The human messed up soon, however, but to Asgore's surprise, the soul became invincible for several seconds. When Asgore took a step back to prepare his next attack, the human pulled an apple from their bag, and took a bite, healing themselves for all the damage Asgore's flame did. 

The battle continued on in the same manner. The Human's invincibility after getting hit was enough for them to last long enough to heal in between Asgore's strikes. Deciding that the flames didn't work, he struck repeatedly with his trident, spearing the child on blades of magic. 

Once gain, the child was invincible, and they simply watched Asgore as they tried to attack. 

"I don't want to fight you!"

"..." his breathing got funny for a second, but he continued to attack.

The battle raged on, and Asgore whittled away at the human's soul, the human realizing, with dawning sadness, that no matter how he acted, or spared, Asgore wouldn't stop attacking, "I suppose I'll have to think on this." the child said, before, to Asgore's surprise, using their mercy to flee the battle. 

Asgore was too shocked to give chase- after everything the Human did to reach the end, they turn and run away? But Asgore supposed it was for the best.

* * *

 

The next day, Asgore stared in horror at the human child, having returned. 

"I'm ready to try again."

"...Very well." the human child once again went into the battle, they asked Asgore questions about his history, his motivations, what he needed the souls for and if he *really* had to fight.

Asgore decided to keep quiet, and focused on the battle. Once again, finding that sparing and acting, even after coming up with new actions, didn't work, the human fled. 

* * *

 

"Hello Asgore."

"Nice day we're having, isn't it?" Asgore answered, not looking up from watering his flowers, "Is that a new notebook?"

"You torched my last one. Luckily, I keep spares. I did need to remember to write down all your patterns again."

"I see." Asgore said, "Very well. Let us do this again, Human."

The human attempted to attack this time, but was still outclassed. Asgore began to whittle away at their HP, only for the human to flee once more. 

* * *

 

"..."

"Howdy." the child said, smiling as they walked into the throne room for the hundredth time. 

"..."

"Starting the silent treatment early, then?"

"I am sorry, Human." Asgore said quietly, "But I don't think I can continue in this manner... every day, I fight for my life, for all Monster Kind... every day, I steel myself to do this..."

"I'm sorry." the child said quietly, "But I'm sure, that if you can just let me through that I can find a way to break the barrier from the other side! With everything I've learned, I'm sure I can get other humans to come down and-"

"No."

"Please! Why not? Why not trust me?"

"Seven human souls. Seven human souls are needed if I am to become a God, and that much power is what is needed to break the barrier."

"I understand that, but Toriel said that humans could pass through! That we had strong souls! I could go through, and bring back help!" the child was thrilled that Asgore was actually discussing the problem.

"Toriel?" Asgore asked, surprised to hear the name, but he shook his head, clearing it of distractions, "No, human. I'm afraid you cannot pass through. To pass through would require a Human soul, yes. But it would also require a monster soul."

"...No, that can't be right."

"I am sorry, human."

"It can't be right! No one else said anything about that! It's not fair!"

Asgore walked away, heading for the barrier. Ready to fight, for the last time, against this human.

The human fled the throne room, not following to the barrier.

* * *

 

A week passed, and Asgore though that perhaps the child would finally end their endless battles. That the child would live peacefully in the underground, and that, some day in the future, when the human was no longer a child, and it came time for them to naturally fall down...

But it was not to be, Asgore thought with a sad expression. The human child had returned, their notebook open already, as they reviewed Asgore's patterns. 

"Human, today, is the last time we will fight." Asgore said sadly.

"No." the child whispered, "I'm sure that there's a way we haven't found yet, Asgore. I just need to keep fighting you, until I find our what it is." 

"Then, when you are near death, you intend to flee once again?"

"I need to keep persevering. As long as I don't die, I can still try again."

"Then, for this. I am truly sorry." as the battle initiated, Asgore drew his trident, and focusing on his magic, on his determination to end the endless battle- he crushed the human's capacity for mercy. The button was shattered, disappearing into magic.

The child stared, not comprehending, as their ability to flee, their ability to spare, simply disappeared. "That... that's not fair! I haven't killed anyone! In all this time! I can't accept that! I don't want to kill you!"

"We don't always get what we want." Asgore said quietly, before attacking with a ferocity borne out of a desire to finish the battle as quickly as possible. 

The child dodged as best as they could, relying on their invincibility and their healing items, but eventually, their bag was empty, their HP was dwindling, and even then, they refused to bring Asgore's HP any lower than it already was.

"It's not fair." the child murmured, as the trident passed through them one last time. Their body fell gently to the floor, and Asgore bent down to pick up the gently glowing violet heart that remained in the air.

* * *

  _ **Even when you felt trapped, you took notes and achieved the end of "Ball."**_


End file.
